Axle.



J. L. WALKER.

AXLE.

APPLIoATIoN FILED 0011.6, 1911.

1,023,283. Patented Apr. 16, 1912.

Witnesses Inventor Attorneys JOSEPH LEE WALKER, OF BATON ROUGE,LOUISIANA.

t AXLE.

Specification. of Letters Patent.

Application led October 6, 1911.

Patented Apr. 16, 1912. serial No. 653,234.

To all whom it may comma.:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH L. WALKER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Baton Rouge, in the parish of East Baton Rouge and State ofLouisiana, have invented a new and useful Axle, of which the followingis a specification.

It is the object of the present invention to provide an axle and abearing for a vehicle wheel, so constructed that the possibility ofbreaking the axle, under an excessive load, will be reduced to aminimum.

A further object of the invention is to provide an axle and a bearingfor a vehicle wheel, in which the wear will be distributed evenlythroughout the entire circumference of the axle.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel means forassembling the bearings with the vehicle frame.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, which will appear as thedescription proceeds, the invention resides in the combination andarrangement of parts and in' the details of construction hereinafterdescribed and claimed, it being understood that changes in the preciseembodiment of invention herein disclosed can be made within the scope ofwhat is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings,-Figure 1 shows a portion of a wagondesigned for general hauling and farm work, equipped with the device ofmy invention; Fig. 2

shows a fragment of a log wagon, to which.

the present invention has been applied; Fig. 3 is a section on the line3-3 of Fig. 1; and Fig. 4 is a detail enlarged from Fig. 2, parts beingsectioned.

In the drawings, the numeral 1 indicates a portion of the platform of awagon, and the numeral 2 indicates a portion of the frame of the truck.Abutting against the frame 2, and depending therefrom, are tubularstandards 3, through which extend bolts 4, the heads of the bolts 4beingv engaged with the frame 2, the bolt-s 4 fitti g closely within thestandards 3.

The bearings are denoted generally by the numeral 5, each bearing beingprovided with van upstanding boss 6, and the lower end of the standard 3being recessed, to receive the boss 6, the lower end of each bolt 4being threaded into the boss 6, so that the ends of the tubularstandards 3 are bound against the under face of the frame 2 and theupper face of the bearing 5.

The wheel is denoted generally by the numeral v7, and may be made of anyform. In the present instance, the wheel 7 comprises a web. 8 fashionedintegrally with a hub 9, through which the axle 10 extends. The wheel 7may rotate upon the axle 10; preferably, however, the wheel 7 and theaxle 10 are secured together for simultaneous rotation.

The ends of the hub 9 are recessed, as shown at 11, to receive the innerends 12 of the bearings 5. Located within the bearings 5 are bushings14, preferably fashioned from Babbitt metal, and it is within thesebushings that the axle 10 is immediately received. The outer ends of thebearings 5 are recessed, as shown at 15, to receive caps 16, connectedwiththe ends of the axle 10 by means of screws 17 or other attachingelements adapted to a like end.

A pair of arched braces 18 are terminally secured as shown at 19 to theframe 2, the intermediate portions of the braces extending across thebottoms of the bearings 5, the braces 18 and the bearings 5 being unitedby means of screw' bolts 20 or the like.

In Figs. 2 and 4, the numeral 21 denotes a portion of the frame of a logwagon, above which the bolster 22 is located, the bolster 22 beingconnected with the frame 21 by means of an arched brace 23. The tubularstandards are denoted by the numeral 24, and the attaching bolts by thenumeral 25, the numeral 2 6 indicating the bearings and the numeral 27indicating the bosses upon the bearings. The construction employed inFigs. 2 and 4, is'substantially identical with the construction employedin Figs. 1 and 3, saving in so far as the alterations in the frames ofthe vehicles serve to change the positions of the bearings relative t-ot-he frame.

From the foregoing it will be seen that there is no chance of the axlebending under a heavy load, since it is supported upon both sides of thewheel by the bearings 5, which bearings are located in close proximityto the hub 9, thereby permit-ting the axle 10 to be made relativelyshort. When the axle 10 is secured to the hub 9, the axle will be wornaway throughout its entire circumference; or the bushings 14 will beworn, in either ofwhich events, the bushings may be renewed readily. Thecaps 16 serve to exclude the dust from the outer ends of the bearings 5,and the cooperation between the hub 9 and the inner ends of the bearings5 is such that dust cannot readily enter the inner ends of theVbearings. IIn vehicles as commonly constructed, wherein the wheelrotates upon a fixed axle, the axle is worn flat upon one side, whereas,in the present invention, if the axle 10 be secured to the hub 9, as maybe done when desired, the wear will take place evenly, around the entirecircumference of the axle.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is l. In a deviceof the class described, a frame; a short, separate axle for each wheel;a wheel upon each axle; bearings receiving the ends of each axle;tubular standards abutting against the bearings and against the frame;and members connected with the frame, the members fitting closely withinthe standards and having threaded portions engaged with the bearings.

2. In a device of the class described, a frame; a short, separate axlefor each wheel;

-'a wheel upon each axle; bearings receiving the ends of each axle, thebearings being provided with upstanding bosses; tubular standardssurrounding the bossesiand abutting against the body portions of thebear ings and against the frame; and members extended through the frameand through the tubular standards, said members being threaded forengagement with the bosses.

3. In a deviceof the class described, a frame; a short, separate axlefor the wheel; a wheel secured to each axle; bearings located on bothsides of the wheel; bushings located within the bearings and receivingthe axle for rotation; closure members removably secured to the ends ofthe axle and fitting within the bearings; bosses upstanding from thebearings; surrounding the bosses and abutting against the bearings andagainst the frame; and membersextended axially through t-he standards,said members bein-g. enga-ged with the frame, and being threaded intoengagement with the bosses.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto affixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

JOSEPH LEE WALKER.

Witnesses:

JAMES C. DoZrER, CHARLES V. PORTER, Jr.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. GL

tubular standards

